Summary Of The Hunting Season By Ojito

While reading the text by Ojito, one begins to wonder what message does the death of Marcelo Lucero send to legal and illegal immigrants in the United States. First and foremost, the killing of an innocent man because he was not seen as the other town members and labeled a “beaner,” conveys the message of exclusion. Even though the U.S. prides themselves in past immigrant traditions, and advocacy programs have been established to establish more acceptable immigrant rights ¬even for those who are undocumented; this country still portrays a message of not only exclusion but also hurt as well. Ultimately, making those seen as “outsiders” unwelcomed in the country. This idea of making those unwelcome is seeded from deep-rooted fear. It is without

In fact, it can be said that the concept of “white space” lead to the increasing amount of seething and hatred built towards the Latino immigrants within the small town of Patchogue. In chapter four of the Hunting Season, a quote by Patrick J. Buchanan from his book the State of Emergency: The Third World Invasion and Conquest of America wrote that perfectly illustrates “white space” and the idea of being invaded by Latino Immigrants. Buchanan wrote the novel to spew hatred among immigrants, stating, “This is not immigration as America knew it, when men and women made a conscious choice to turn their backs on their native lands and cross the ocean to become Americans. This is an invasion, the greatest invasion in history” (Ojito, 2013, p. 73). He blamed this phenomenon on the increasing number of immigrant growth. For example, he claims that in 1960 there were perhaps five million Asians and Hispanics in the United States and today there are fifty-seven million, ten percent to twenty percent being all Mexican, Central American, and Caribbean people (Ojito, 2013, p. 73). Like Buchanan, others shared his views, such as Samuel P. Huntington, who claimed that the most significant threat to society is immigration and the only way to fix the problem is by assimilation. However, those against immigration think adaptation would be too tricky for Mexicans and other Hispanics

Therefore, new reforms took place to control the immigration problem. As more and more immigrations entered the U.S. legally and illegally, white Americans saw a threat. In 2006, millions of immigrants marched in the street to raise awareness on immigration issues but also called for immigration reform. Unfortunately, their march had negative consequences for many saw how rapidly their numbers increased within the country. In 2008, the New York Times published an article called “The Great Immigration Panic”. Within the article it said, “Someday the country will recognize the true cost of its war on illegal immigration... the true cost is to national identity: the sense of who we are and what we value… The restrictionist message is brutally simple- that illegal immigrants deserve to have no rights, mercy or hope. It refuses to recognize that illegality is not an identity; it is a status that can be mended by making reparations and resuming a lawful life” (Ojito, 2013, p. 55). The overwhelming presence of undocumented immigrants has sparked much debate and tragedy. The concept of “white space” is to alienate any individual that does not share the same characteristics and agenda. The idea of immigrants being “invaders” and affecting the natural environment for white Americans, is simply a way to mask racist